Last week, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta in Washington, D.C., ruled that he would fast-track President Trump's lawsuit to block his accounting firm from handing eight years of his financial records to the House Oversight Committee, which subpoenaed them. Mehta said he would decide the merits of the case after a hearing on Tuesday, skipping a preliminary phase. On Monday, Trump's lawyers said Mehta is moving too fast.
"The sole question before the court — Is the House Oversight Committee's issuance of a subpoena to Mazars USA LLP for financial records of President Donald Trump and various associated entities a valid exercise of legislative power? — is fully briefed, and the court can discern no benefit from an additional round of legal arguments," Mehta, an Obama appointee, wrote Thursday.
Trump's lawyers disagreed on Monday, saying they need more time to gather evidence and develop their legal arguments in the lawsuit they filed. On Monday night, Mehta rejected their request to delay the hearing or narrow its scope but said he will hear their objections on Tuesday.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"The executive branch strategy mostly seems to be a blanket rejection of all attempts at oversight, regardless of the issue, up until the election," Lisa Kern Griffin, a professor of constitutional law at Duke University, tells Reuters. "So any time the calendar is accelerated that probably favors Congress." If the losing side appeals, Mehta's accelerated schedule means an appellate court could get the case by summer, The Washington Post reports.
Last week, retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens told The Wall Street Journal "the president is exercising powers that do not really belong to him," adding, "I mean, he has to comply with subpoenas and things like that." If the Supreme Court weighs in on the battles between Trump and House Democrats, "I wouldn't want to predict that anybody's going to take the incorrect view," Stevens said. "But certainly, the correct view is pretty clear."
-
Should Labour break manifesto pledge and raise taxes?Today's Big Question There are ‘powerful’ fiscal arguments for an income tax rise but it could mean ‘game over’ for the government
-
Nigerian Modernism: an ‘entrancing, enlightening exhibition’The Week Recommends Tate Modern’s ‘revelatory’ show includes 250 works examining Nigerian art pre- and post independence
-
To the point: the gender divide over exclamation marksTalking Point 'Men harbouring urges to be more exclamative' can finally take a breath – this is what using the punctuation really conveys
-
Argentinian beef is at the center of American farmers’ woesThe Explainer ‘It feels like a slap in the face to rural America,’ said one farmer
-
Will latest Russian sanctions finally break Putin’s resolve?Today's Big Question New restrictions have been described as a ‘punch to the gut of Moscow’s war economy’
-
Warner Bros. explores sale amid Paramount bidsSpeed Read The media giant, home to HBO and DC Studios, has received interest from multiple buying parties
-
China’s rare earth controlsThe Explainer Beijing has shocked Washington with export restrictions on minerals used in most electronics
-
Gold tops $4K per ounce, signaling financial uneaseSpeed Read Investors are worried about President Donald Trump’s trade war
-
The struggles of Aston Martin: burning cash not rubberIn the Spotlight The car manufacturer, famous for its association with the James Bond franchise, is ‘running out of road’
-
Why are beef prices rising? And how is politics involved?Today's Big Question Drought, tariffs and consumer demand all play a role
-
Electronic Arts to go private in record $55B dealspeed read The video game giant is behind ‘The Sims’ and ‘Madden NFL’
